Apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signal

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signal at different laser power intensities of an optical disk drive. The apparatus includes an amplifier for receiving a push-pull signal acquired from an optical disk to generate an adjusted signal, a multiplexer for receiving the push-pull signal and the adjusted signal and selecting the push-pull signal or the adjusted signal as a slicing signal for output according to a power state signal, and a slicer for receiving the slicing signal and slicing the slicing signal according to a slicing level to generate the pre-pit signal. Thus, the apparatus only needs one set of slicer to correctly slice the pre-pit signal.

This application is a Continuation in part of application Ser. No.10/676,008, filed on Oct. 2, 2003. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to an apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signal,and more particularly to an apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signal atdifferent laser power intensities by a single slicer.

2. Description of the Related Art

In a typical DVD-R (Digital Versatile Disk Recordable), a pre-pit isadditionally formed between adjacent tracks to record the addressinformation in order to correctly detect the frequency of the wobblingtracks. FIG. 1A shows a cross-sectional view of an optical disk. Asshown in FIG. 1A, the number “2” denotes a groove, the number “3”denotes a land, and the number “4” denotes a pre-pit. Since the pre-pitshave been uniformly formed over the entire surface of the DVD-R when itis manufactured, the reference addresses of the DVD-R may be reproducedfrom the pre-pits. Shown in FIG. 1B, a push-pull signal is generatedfrom the signals of Sa, Sb, Sc and Sd by the equation of(Sa+Sd)−(Sb+Sc), where the Sa, Sb, Sc, and Sd represent the fourdetecting signal of a photo detector (PD) 8. An example of thispush-pull signal is illustrated in FIG. 1C. This push-pull signalcontains not only Pre-pit signal but also wobble signal due to the disctrack is formed by wobble-like structure. In addition, since the powerintensities of the laser beams are switched between high and low powerduring recording onto disc for generating the information bit “pit” and“land”, respectively. Consequently, the level of this push-pull signaldepends on recording power intensity, i.e., high power period produceshigh signal level and low power period generates low signal level.Consequently, the apparatus for detecting the pre-pit signal has to dealwith the issue of push-pull signal with being high-low power dependentduring recording onto disc.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,930,222, entitled “Pre-pit detecting device andinformation recording apparatus employing the same”, has proposed amethod for detecting the pre-pit signal at a high power state and a lowpower state by two sets of detection circuits. FIG. 2 shows anarchitecture diagram of a conventional pre-pit detection apparatus.Referring to FIG. 2, the pre-pit detection apparatus 19 includes a firstcomparator 34 for receiving a push-pull signal and generating a firstcomparison signal Sc1, a second comparator 37 for receiving thepush-pull signal and generating a second comparison signal Sc2, a timinggenerator 43 for generating a timing control signal, and a set of logiccircuit for outputting the pre-pit signal Spd according to the timingcontrol signal. The pre-pit detection apparatus 19 further employs afirst low-pass filter 32 and a first adder 33 to generate a firstslicing level Sla1, and a second low-pass filter 35 and a second adder36 to generate a second slicing level Sla2. The timing generator 43outputs a control signal Ssp to a sample and hold circuit 31 accordingto different power states so as to generate the first comparison signalSc1 by the first comparator 34 at the low power state.

The method of the above-mentioned patent may be free from beinginfluenced by different power magnitudes of the laser beams at thedifferent power intensities. However, the drawbacks thereof are thatmore circuits are needed and the cost is high. For example, anadditional set of detection circuit is needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above-mentioned problems, it is therefore an object ofthe invention to provide an apparatus for adjusting a push-pull signalby an amplifier, and detecting a pre-pit signal at different powerintensities by a single detection circuit.

To achieve the above-mentioned object, the detection apparatus of theinvention includes an amplifier for receiving a push-pull signalacquired from an optical disk to generate an adjusted signal, amultiplexer for receiving the push-pull signal and the adjusted signaland selecting the push-pull signal or the adjusted signal as a slicingsignal for output according to a power state signal, and a slicing unitfor receiving the incoming signal and slicing it to generate the pre-pitsignal according to a slicing level. Thus, the apparatus for detectingthe pre-pit signal of the invention only needs one set of slicing unitto correctly slice the pre-pit signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A shows a cross-sectional view of an optical disk.

FIG. 1B shows a push-pull signal generator.

FIG. 1C shows an example of push-pull signal.

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a conventional pre-pit detectionapparatus.

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of an apparatus for detecting a pre-pitsignal according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a slicer in the apparatus for detectingthe pre-pit signal of the invention.

FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of an apparatus for detecting a pre-pitsignal according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 shows schematic illustrations of associated waveforms, whereinFIG. 6A shows the pre-pit signal, FIG. 6B shows the power state signal,FIG. 6C shows the push-pull signal, and FIG. 6D shows the slicingsignal.

FIG. 7 shows partially enlarged illustrations of parts of the waveformsof FIG. 6, wherein FIG. 7A shows the pre-pit signal, FIG. 7B shows thepower state signal, FIG. 7C shows the push-pull signal, and FIG. 7Dshows the slicing signal.

FIG. 8 shows partially enlarged illustrations of the other parts of thewaveforms of FIG. 6, wherein FIG. 8A shows the pre-pit signal, FIG. 8Bshows the power state signal, FIG. 8C shows the push-pull signal, andFIG. 8D shows the slicing signal.

FIG. 9 shows a block diagram of an apparatus for detecting a pre-pitsignal according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 shows a block diagram of an apparatus for detecting a pre-pitsignal according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 shows an example of the waveform of the power state signal usedin FIG. 9 and FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The apparatus of the invention for detecting a pre-pit signal will bedescribed with reference to the accompanying drawings. Since the powerintensities of the laser beams of the optical disk may be different whena disk drive is recording, the magnitudes of the push-pull signal, whichare reflected and acquired from the optical disk, are also different.The invention utilizes an amplifier to adjust the amplitude of thepush-pull signal at different power intensities, such that the slicingsignals input to the slicer at different states have substantially equalpeak values. Consequently, the invention only needs one set of slicer tocorrectly slice the pre-pit signal.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signalaccording to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring toFIG. 3, the apparatus 50 for detecting a pre-pit signal according to thefirst embodiment of the invention includes an amplifier 51, amultiplexer 52, and a slicer 53. The amplifier 51 receives the push-pullsignal, which is reflected and acquired from the optical disk, adjuststhe magnitude of the signal, and outputs an adjusted signal. Forinstance, when the amplifier 51 is utilized to adjust the push-pullsignal at a high power state, the amplifier 51 attenuates the push-pullsignal such that the magnitude of the attenuated push-pull signal issubstantially equal to a peak value of the push-pull signal at a lowpower state. When the amplifier 51 is utilized to adjust the push-pullsignal of the low power state, the amplifier 51 amplifies the push-pullsignal such that the magnitude of the amplified push-pull signal issubstantially equal to a peak value of the push-pull signal at the highpower state.

Then, the detection apparatus 50 utilizes the multiplexer 52 to selectan unadjusted push-pull signal or the adjusted push-pull signal as theslicing signal for output according to the power state signal. Forinstance, when the amplifier 51 is utilized to adjust the push-pullsignal at the high power state, the multiplexer 52 selects the outputsignal (adjusted signal) of the amplifier 51 at the high power state,and selects the push-pull signal at the low power state. When theamplifier 51 is utilized to adjust the push-pull signal of the low powerstate, the multiplexer 52 selects the output signal (adjusted signal) ofthe amplifier 51 at the low power state, and selects the push-pullsignal at the high power state. Finally, the detection apparatus 50utilizes the slicer 53 to slice the slicing signal output from themultiplexer 52, and the pre-pit signal is correctly generatedaccordingly.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a slicer in the apparatus for detectingthe pre-pit signal of the invention. Referring to FIG. 4, the slicer 53includes a low-pass filter 531, an adder 532, and a comparator 533. Thelow-pass filter 531 receives the slicing signal and generates an averagesignal of the slicing signal. The adder 532 adds a constant voltage tothe average signal to generate a slicing voltage. The comparator 533receives the slicing signal and the slicing voltage, and outputs thepre-pit signal. The comparator 533 outputs a high level when the slicingsignal is greater than the slicing voltage, and a low level when theslicing signal is smaller than the slicing voltage. Of course, theoperation of the slicer is not limited to this manner. For example, theslicing voltage may be generated in other manners.

FIG. 5 shows an architecture diagram of an apparatus for detecting apre-pit signal according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention. Referring to FIG. 5, the apparatus 60 of the invention fordetecting a pre-pit signal includes a variable gain amplifier 61 and aslicer 53. The variable gain amplifier 61 receives the push-pull signal,adjusts the magnitude of the push-pull signal by different gainaccording to the power state signal, and outputs the slicing signal. Thegain of the variable gain amplifier 61 at the high power state issmaller than that at the low power state, such that the slicing signaloutput by the variable gain amplifier 61 has substantially equalmagnitudes at whichever power states.

FIGS. 6A˜6D show schematic illustrations of associated waveformsgenerated by the apparatus of the invention for detecting the pre-pitsignal, wherein FIG. 6A shows the pre-pit signal, FIG. 6B shows thepower state signal, FIG. 6C shows the wobble signal, and FIG. 6D showsthe slicing signal. FIGS. 7A˜7D show partially enlarged illustrationsfrom time 6.745 to 6.77 of FIGS. 6A˜6D, respectively, and FIGS. 8A˜8Dshow partially enlarged illustrations from time 6.875 to 6.9 of FIGS.6A˜6D, respectively.

In the power state signal of FIGS. 6B, 7B, and 8B, “1” denotes the lowpower state and “0” denotes the high power state. As shown in FIG. 6C,the wobble signal has an upward pre-pit pulse between time 6.745 to6.77, and the state is the low power state. In addition, the wobblesignal also has an upward pre-pit pulse between time 6.875 to 6.9, andthe state is the high power state. Since the states are different, thepeak values of the two pulses are also different, wherein one of thepeak values is about 0.02, and the other is about 0.1, which is fivetimes greater than 0.02. Consequently, the invention employs theamplifier to attenuate the wobble signal at the writing state to 1/5times of the original one, as shown in FIGS. 6D and 8D. The peak valueof the slicing signal is substantially equal to 0.02 at either thereading state or the writing state. Of course, it is also possible toemploy the amplifier to amplify the wobble signal at the reading stateto five times of the original one, such that the peak value of theslicing signal is kept at about 0.1 at either the reading state or thewriting state. Consequently, the apparatus of the invention fordetecting the pre-pit signal only needs a set of slicer to correctlyslice the pre-pit signal.

As described in above, the apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signal inFIGS. 4 or 5 uses the signal generated by the equation of(Sa+Sd)−(Sb+Sc), as the input signal. That is, the input signal has beenfully combined previously. However, the apparatus for detecting apre-pit signal also can use two partially combined signals (Sa+Sd) and(Sb+Sc) as the input signals or use four original signals Sa, Sd, Sb andSc as the input signals. FIG. 9 shows a block diagram of an apparatusfor detecting a pre-pit signal according to a third embodiment of thepresent invention, which uses the partially combined signals (Sa+Sd) and(Sb+Sc) as the input signals.

As shown in FIG. 9, the first input signal is the summed signal (Sa+Sd)and the second input signal is the summed signal (Sb+Sc). The firstamplifying unit 94 receives the first input signal and the power statesignal and generates a first adjusted signal. The second amplifying unit95 receives the second input signal and the power state signal andgenerates a second adjusted signal. The calculating unit 96 receives thefirst adjusted signal and second adjusted signal and generates acombined signal as the input signal of the unit 50. The calculating unit96 is a subtractor-amplifier in this embodiment. A subtractor-amplifieris a device performing a subtraction and an amplifying function. Thefirst amplifying unit 94 includes an amplifier 941, a multiplexer 942and an AGC (Auto Gain Controller) 943. The amplifier 941 receives thefirst input signal and generates a first amplified signal with a firstgain. The multiplexer 942 receives the first input signal and the firstamplified signal and outputs one of the signals according to the powerstate signal. The AGC 943 receives the output signal from themultiplexer 942 and generates the first adjusted signal. The structureand function of the second amplifying unit 95 are same with that of thefirst amplifying unit 94, therefore the detail description is omitted.

FIG. 10 shows a block diagram of an apparatus for detecting a pre-pitsignal according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, whichuses the partially combined signals (Sa+Sd) and (Sb+Sc) as the inputsignals. As shown in FIG. 10, the first input signal is the summedsignal (Sa+Sd) and the second input signal is the summed signal (Sb+Sc).The first amplifying unit 101 receives the first input signal and thepower state signal and generates a first adjusted signal with differentgains according to the power state signal. The second amplifying unit102 receives the second input signal and the power state signal andgenerates a second adjusted signal with different gains according to thepower state signal. The calculating unit 96 receives the first adjustedsignal and second adjusted signal and generates a combined signal as theinput signal of the unit 60. The calculating unit 96 is asubtractor-amplifier in this embodiment. The first amplifying unit 101includes a VGA (variable gain amplifier) 1011 and an AGC (Auto GainController) 1012. The amplifier 1011 receives the first input signal andgenerates a first amplified signal with different gains according to thepower state signal. The AGC 1012 receives the first amplified signal andgenerates the first adjusted signal. The structure and function of thesecond amplifying unit 102 are same with that of the first amplifyingunit 101, therefore the detail description is omitted.

Although the amplifying unit 94 and 95 are used in the third embodiment,they also can be used in the fourth embodiment to replace the amplifyingunit 101 and 102. With the same reason, although the amplifying unit 101and 102 are used in the fourth embodiment, they also can be used in thethird embodiment to replace the amplifying unit 94 and 95.

FIG. 11 shows an example of the waveform of the power state signal usedin FIG. 9 and FIG. 10. As shown in FIG. 11, the waveform of the powerstate signal has the READ state and the WRITE state.

While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in theaccompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments aremerely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention, andthat this invention not be limited to the specific construction andarrangement shown and described, since various other modifications mayoccur to those ordinarily skilled in the art.

1. An apparatus for detecting a pre-pit signal at different laser powerintensities of an optical disk drive, the apparatus comprising: a firstamplifying unit for receiving a first input signal and a power statesignal and generating a first adjusted signal; a second amplifying unitfor receiving a second input signal and the power state signal andgenerating a second adjusted signal; a calculating unit for calculatingthe difference of the first adjusted signal and the second adjustedsignal and generating a combined signal; a first amplifier for receivingthe combined signal to generate a first amplified signal; a firstmultiplexer for receiving the combined signal and the first amplifiedsignal, selecting the combined signal or the first amplified signalaccording to the power state signal, and generating a slicing signal;and a slicer for receiving the slicing signal and slicing the slicingsignal according to a slicing level to generate the pre-pit signal. 2.The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first amplifying unitcomprises: a second amplifier for receiving the first input signal andamplifying the first input signal with a first gain; a secondmultiplexer for receiving the first input signal and the output signalof the second amplifier and outputting one of the signals according tothe power state signal; and a first AGC (automatic gain controller) forreceiving the output signal of the second multiplexer and generating thefirst adjusted signal.
 3. The apparatus according to claim 2, whereinthe second amplifying unit comprises: a third amplifier for receivingthe second input signal and amplifying the second input signal with asecond gain; a third multiplexer for receiving the second input signaland the output signal of the third amplifier and outputting one of thesignals according to the power state signal; and a second AGC forreceiving the output signal of the third multiplexer and generating thesecond adjusted signal.
 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, whereinthe first amplifying unit comprises: a first VGA (variable gainamplifier) for receiving the first input signal and amplifying the firstinput signal with different gains according to the power state signal;and a first AGC for receiving the output signal of the first VGA andgenerating the first adjusted signal.
 5. The apparatus according toclaim 4, wherein the second amplifying unit comprises: a second VGA forreceiving the second input signal and amplifying the second input signalwith different gains according to the power state signal; and a secondAGC for receiving the output signal of the second VGA and generating thesecond adjusted signal.
 6. The apparatus according to claim 1, whereinthe calculating unit is an subtractor-amplifier.
 7. The apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the power state signal comprises a lowpower state and a high power state.
 8. An apparatus for detecting apre-pit signal at different laser power intensities of an optical diskdrive, the apparatus comprising: a first amplifying unit for receiving afirst input signal and a power state signal and generating a firstadjusted signal; a second amplifying unit for receiving a second inputsignal and the power state signal and generating a second adjustedsignal; a calculating unit for calculating the difference of the firstadjusted signal and the second adjusted signal and generating a combinedsignal; a first VGA (variable gain amplifier) for receiving the combinedsignal acquired from an optical disk and adjusting the combined signalby different gain values according to the power state signal to generatea slicing signal; and a slicing unit for receiving the slicing signaloutput from the first VGA and slicing the slicing signal according to aslicing level to generate the pre-pit signal.
 9. The apparatus accordingto claim 8, wherein the first amplifying unit comprises: a firstamplifier for receiving the first input signal and amplifying the firstinput signal with a first gain; a first multiplexer for receiving thefirst input signal and the output signal of the first amplifier andoutputting one of the signals according to the power state signal; and afirst AGC (automatic gain controller) for receiving the output signal ofthe second multiplexer and generating the first adjusted signal.
 10. Theapparatus according to claim 9, wherein the second amplifying unitcomprises: a second amplifier for receiving the second input signal andamplifying the second input signal with a second gain; a secondmultiplexer for receiving the second input signal and the output signalof the second amplifier and outputting one of the signals according tothe power state signal; and a second AGC for receiving the output signalof the second multiplexer and generating the second adjusted signal. 11.The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first amplifying unitcomprises: a second VGA for receiving the first input signal andamplifying the first input signal with different gains according to thepower state signal; and a first AGC for receiving the output signal ofthe second VGA and generating the first adjusted signal.
 12. Theapparatus according to claim 11, wherein the second amplifying unitcomprises: a third VGA for receiving the second input signal andamplifying the second input signal with different gains according to thepower state signal; and a second AGC for receiving the output signal ofthe third VGA and generating the second adjusted signal.
 13. Theapparatus according to claim 8, wherein the calculating unit is asubtractor-amplifier.
 14. The apparatus according to claim 8, whereinthe power state signal comprises a low power state and a high powerstate.
 15. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the gain valueof the VGA at the high power state is smaller than that at the low powerstate.
 16. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein a peak value ofthe slicing signal output from the VGA at the low power state issubstantially equal to that at the high power state.